Door-operating mechanism for gondola cars.



No.. 855,837. PATENTED JUNE 4, 1907.

l P .Lnonns- DooR OPERATING MEGHANISM PoR GONDOLA GARS.

A APPLICATION FILED APR. 28, 1905.

' 4 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

PATENTBD JUNE 4, 1907. Y

E. I. DODDS. DOOR OPERATING MECHANISM FOR GONDOL A GARS.

APPLICATION FILED APR.28, 1905.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

PATENTED JUNE 4, 1907.

E. I. DODDS. D003 OPERATING -MEGHANISM PoR GoNDoLA GARS.

v4 APPLICATION FILED APR. Z8, 1905.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

DOOR OPERATING MEGHANISM FOR GOND'OLA CARS.

APPLICATION FIL'D APR. 28, 1905.

4 sHEBTsfsHEBT 4'.

' UNITED sTAT Es PATENT OFFICE.

ETHAN I. Donne, OF'PULLMLAN, ILLINOIS, AssIGNOR TO THE 'PULLMAN COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

DOOR-OPERATING MECHANISM vFOFIGONDOLA CARS.

i lSpecification of Lettera Patent.

Patented Jiune 4, 190'?. l

' App1im'ion'nea-npl28,1905. seminar/.879.

p Improvements in -Door-0perating ,Mechanisms for Gondola Cars, of which the following is .a specification. My invention relates to metal car constructions, more particularly cars of that .type

- wherein the bottoms are constituted by a series of ioor sections in the form of hinged doors that may be dropped by means of door-operating mechanism to discharge the load beneath or tothe sides of the car and subsequently raised to and held in normally closed position.

Inan applicatlon heretofore filed by me on the.24th day of April, 1905, Serial No..

. 257,150, I have disclosed as the subject mat-.

ter thereof a door operating lmechanism characterized by the provision of a shaft eX'- tending longitudinally of each-side of a car and provided with oiset or cranked portions engaging the under sides of the doors, said p shaft being so mounted and operated as to mo-ve bodily laterally in a direction transversely of the car-body or inwardly and ,outwa'rdly ofthe door, thereby securing a longer and; more eec'tive arclof travel to the doorengaging parts. In said application, however, the operating mechanism is shown as applied to doors permanently hinged alongside the center sills of the car and opening outwardly of the sides of the latter.

My present invention is based on the same fundamental principle of operation as disclosed in the aforesaid application, but embodies an extended application of this principle to a mechanism adapted to co-operatq with doors hinged along both the center sillsv and side sills and adapted to be swung on either hinge so as to open' either inwardly or outwardly of the transverse dimension bf lthe car-body; the general objects of the inventionbeing to provide a car capable of discharging its load either directly beneath thel car-body or. outwardly ofthe sides thereof, and to provide a simple and easilymanipulated mechanism for operating the hinged doors of such a car.

rIn the accom anying drawings I have .illustrated a pre erred mechanical embodi- .on .the door-o perating shaft.

their inner and outer longitudinal ment of my invention as applied' to a steel gondola car, and referring thereto, 55 Figure l is an end elevational View of a Lear-body embodying my invention-with one side thereof in cross-section showing the door-operating mechanism; Fig. ,2 isa side elevational view of a portion of the car-body: Fig. 3 is a top plan view'of Fig. 2 with the -side and end walls in horizontal section; Fig.

l` is a side elevationalview of the ,door-operating parts, with thecarebody in longitudmal vertical section; Fig. 5is an enlarged'c'r'osssectional view showing'one ofthe doors open and the other closed; Fig. 6 is an" enlarged detailfview in longitudinal sectionthrough the shaft-operating mechanisms at the end ofthe car Fig. 7 is a detail front elevational view of the shaft-operating mechanisn1 shown in Fig. 6; and Fig. 8 is a sectionaltde tail illustrating the manner -'and means of mounting the actuating lever and star wheels Referring to the drawings, 10 may desi nate the twin center sills which, invcars ofl this type, usually accommodate the drawbar and coupler. v l

1l designates the side-plates and 12 the end-plates of the car-body.

13 designates the sidestakes, herein shown as providedwith outwardly projecting stiffening webs of increasing width from the top to the plane of the floor of the car to aiford a maximum resistance to said strains at the points of greatest bending moment.

14 designates each of a series of doors constituting drop-bottom sections of the car floor.. lThese doors .are hinged alon both 9 ges in the following manner and by :the following means. Rive'ted to the lower ends of the Y side stakes 13 are bracket plates'-1 5 which`` support shafts lsomoiintedtherein as to be capable ofia limited-longitudinal playin their bearings effected 'by means hereir'iaftei: described. `Fasten these shafts yare depend `ing arms 17 provided'witlilaterally extend@ ing pintles 18, Von'which latter are'hinged'.th'lw outer ends'of. bracket arms 19 rigidly boltedl;v to the outer mar `nal portions of the doors .1'..5 movement thereof to disconnect the hinged cranked 'acentying4 transoms and'underlying the' `own axis,

ing the inner margins of the doors with the same capacity for a swinging movement on their iniierviiiargins as hinges, consisting of shafts mounted in the transverse frame -inenibers of the car-body, indicated at 21 arms 22 and 24, when desired.

Dis osed longitudinallyT of and beneath each side of the car -bottom is a door-operating shaft 25 which has integral oifsetor ortions 25 disposed between adinged doors. Each shaft has fast thereon a series vof spur o'ears 26 that rest upon and operate over raclrs 27 herein shown as bolted to the. lower margin of the flying transonis. The offest portions or cranks 25 of the ,shaft are each provided preferably with one or more rollers '28 that engagev tht` under surfaces ofthe doors in an anti-friction manner.

From the foregoing it will be seen that when the shaft 25 is given aiturnin movenient, the shaft will not only rotate a )out its but, by reason of the gear and rack mechanismen which it is mounted, will he caused to travel bodily and laterally inwardly mid outwardly of the sides of the cnr,-

-body, this resulting in giving to the roller supports of the doors a long wide arc of travel, permitting a wide openin of the doors, iis well -as affording a inecianically advantageous means for operating the latter.

Any suitable and convenient mechanism for operating said shafts may be employed, a :simple mechanism for this purpose herein shown consisting of thc following; Refei ring more particularly to Fi s. 6, 7 and 8, 29 designates a bar securely bo ted to the outer face of the transverse end sill 30 and containing a dove-tailed channel 31. On said -bai is slii'lably mounted by means of a. dovetailed tongue 32a engaging. vsaid channel a block 32 in which is jlournaled the end of the shaft 25. On the overlianging end of said shaft are keyed a pair oftwiii star wheels 33,

which, .as shown4 in Fig. 8, may have iii- .fwardly proiecting hubs "335 on which is loosely mounted an operating lever 34 that carries on either side a 'pivoted dog 35 enlgagging the toothedperipheriesof the star wheels. Pivotally mounted on the block 32 above the inner star wheel 33 are a pair of "loppositely ,disposer-l1 'arid @operating detent 'pwls 36'and 37, the noses, of which overlie and 'engage the teeth of said star wheel, one of said pawls preventing rotation of the star wheels and shaft in one direction, and the y other .preventing such rotation in the opposite direction. When both engage the star wheel in Athe manner shown in Fig. 7 the shaft is securely held against turning and sidewise bodily movement in either direction.

For the purpose of effecting sufficient longitudinal movement of the outer hinge shaftsl to effect the hinging and uiihinging of the doors along Itheir 'outer edges, I have shown a lever 38 pivoted at its lower end at 39 to a bracket'40 sus ended from one of the bracket plates' 15, sai lever having a vertical slot 41 engaging a crossin 42 carried by 4the endof the shaft 16. gy manipulating the lever 38 the shaft4 16 may be shifted so as to carry the pintles or hinge-pins 18 into and out of engagement with the bracket arms 19, as desired. A similar lever 43 (Fig. 3) is herein shown for similarly actuating the inner longitudinally movable hinge shaft 20.

y In operation, assuming' that the doors are closed, and that it isy desired to discharge' the load outwardly ofthe sides of the cai', the-levers 38 are actuated to release' the hinged .arms 19 fr0m their supporting indes-18 and, by means of the lever 34 this) shafts 2E;

are turned in a direction to cause them to travel bodily inwardly of thecar, the inner l deteiit pawl bei ng turned out of the way for this purpose, and the actuating dogs 3'5 being thrown into proper engagement with the star wheel to start the travel of the shaft after which the weight of the load is Isusli- ICO cient to complete the movement of the shaft; 'the relative'positions of the parts at the 4completion of the bending movement beingl shownlat the left in Fig. 5.. Anbpposite movement .imparted to the shaft by lever 34 and the dogs 35. effects the return" of the parts to normal position, the proper detent pawl being thrown into action to hold the shaft against return movement' as the doorvengaging cranks are gradually swung up by I* successive actuations of thelever 34. In caseit is desired to discharge the load beneath the car, and consequently to swing the doors on their outer margins'as hinges,' the inner levers 43 are actuated, separating the hinged arms 24 from their supporting pintles 23; whereupon, by actuating the shafts 25 in a .direction outwardly of the sides of the. car .in .the manner already described a wide swinging iiioveiiient is imparted to the inner margins of t-he doors. When the doors are returned to normal or horizontal position, .whether swung oii their inner or outer margins, an inward movement of the hinge Arods 16 or 20, as the case may be, re-establishes the preyiously disconnected hinge conn ections and insures the support of the doors at both margins as well as through the intermediate support afforded by the shafts 25.

iig

rIt being evident that minor changes in the details of construction and relative arrangement of parts might be'made in the abovedescribed mechanism Without variance from the principle thereof, or loss of the advantages secured thereby, I do not limit the invention to the particular structure and mechanism disclosed, except to the extent indicated in specific claims:

This patent is intended to embrace only so much of the disclosure made herein as is cov ered by the claims.

1. In a railway car having center sills, the combination of one or more dumping doors on each side of said center sills, and separable hinge mechanisms, supporting each of said doors at both of its longitudinal edges, whereby the hinge mechanism' on either eddie of any of said doors may be'separated and permit the door to open turning on the unseparated hinge mechanism at its opposite edge, substantially as described.

2. In a railway car having center sills, the combination of one or more dumping doors on each side of said center `sills, separable hinge mechanisms supporting each of said doors at both of its longitudinal edges, Whereby the hinge' mechanismen either edge of any of said doors may be separated and permit the door to open turning on the unsepa-v rated hinge mechanism at its opposite edge,

,and means to control the movements of said g doors, substantially as described.

3; In a railway car having center sills, the

, combination of oneor more dumping doors on each sideof said center sills, separable hinge mechanisms supporting each of said doorsatboth ,of its longitudinal edges, wherebyr the hinge mechanism on either edge of any of said doors may be separated and permit the doorto open turning'on the unseparated hinge mechanism at its opposite edge,l and means to close said doors, substantia ly .as described.

4. In a railway. car having center sills, the

combination o'one or more dumping doors 'any of said doors may be separated and permit the door'to open turning on the unseparated hinge mechanism at itsopposite edge,

-in .either' direction,

'a d means to close' said-doors when openedv substantially as de' scribed. i

combination of one or more dumping doors 66 hinge mechanisms o supportin ydoorsat both of its lo any of said doors may beseparatedian pe1j' initthe door toiopeni-turningontheunseparated hinge mechanism at its opposite edgeV rated hinge mechanism. at its opposite edge,'.

and door-operating means each including a rotatable cranked or oiiset shaft, substantially as described.

7 In a railway car having center sills, the combination of one or more dumping doors on each side. of said center sillsfseparable hinge mechanisms supporting `each of said doors at both of its longitudinal edges, Whereby the hinge mechanism on either edge of any of said doors may be separated and permit theA door to open turning on the unseparated hinge mechanism at its opposite edge, and door-peratingmeans each including a Arotatable cranked or offset shaft, said doors resting uponand supported by the cranked or offset portions of said shafts, substanf tially as described.

8. In a railway'car having center sills, the combination of one or more dumping doors on each side of said center sills, separable` hinge mechanisms suppo-rting eachof said `doors at both of its longitudinal edges, whereby the hinge mechanism on either edge of any of said doors may be separated and pen mit the door toA open turning on-the unsepa- `rated hinge mechanismat itsA opposite edge,

and door-operating means eachincluding a rotatable cranked or offset shaft", said doors resting upon and supported by the cranked or offset portions of said shafts, the cranked or offset portions of said shafts being in vertiecal planes 'when the doors are in closed position substantially as described.

IIO

9. In a railway car having centersills and I a flat or flush bottom, the combination of oneor more dumping doorson opposite sides of said sills, said doors forming parts of said flat or flush bottom, and separable hinge mechanisms supporting each of said doors at both of its longitudinal edges, wherebyy the hinge mechanism on either edge of any of said doors -Y may be separated andl permit the door to n, 5. In 'la railway car having center sills, they open turning on .the unseparated hinge me'chanism at its opposite edge, substantially as described.

10. In a railway car having center sills and a Vflat or Hush bottom, -thecombination of one or more dumping'doorson opposite sides of said sills, said doors forn'ijnglparts of said'liat or flush bottoni, separable hngemechanisrns whereby the hinge mechanism on either edgeC supporting: each of said dolor-s at-l both of its longitudinal edges, whereby the hinge mechy anism on either edge of any of said doors may of any of saidv doors may be separated and 'permit the doorto o en turning on the unseparated hinge mec anism at its opposite edge, substantiallyas described.

12. Inra railway car, the combination of a car-body-having aisubstantially flush and center of the carforming portions of said bot-Z tom, and separable 'hinge mechanisms sup-A 4o section, an 'means for impartinga combined horizontal botto-m, two sets of dumping iioor `doors arranged in -two longitudinahseries and forming portions-of said bottom, and means supportin said doors lpermitting either longitudinal e ge of -each tobe dropped, substantially as described.

13.- In' a railway car, the combination of a car-body having a substantially flush and horizontal bottom, one or more dumpin iioor doors on each side of the longitudina center of the car forming portions of said bottom, and means supporting said doors permitting either longitudinal edge of each to be dropped, substantially as described,

14.' In a railway car, the combination of acar-body having a substantially iiush' and horizontal bottom, one or more dumin floor doors on each side of the 'longitu 'n porting ch of s aid doors at both 'of its longitudina on either edge of any -of saidl oors may-be .separated to :permit the door to turn on the rable'hinge mec .y 'atopposite edges, 5,1

unseparable hin e 'meK :hanismv at itsopposite edge; 4substantia lyfas described'. A v

` 15. In a railway ear, the combination oi a vhaft bodily movable ltoward and from the f rable` hinge mec hin e edges of said door, substantially as dege, a shaft u on lwhich said door rests, said shaft being be ea edges, whereby the hingie mechanism' 18. The combination wlth a car-bodyhaving a dumping floor section, of separable.

hinge mechanisms supporting said floor section on both of its longitudinalv edges whereby either edge may be dropped, and alongitudinally extending shaft mounted beneath said floor section, said shaft having one or more offset portions engaging the under side' of said floor section, and means for turning said shaft ,and causin the same' to move bodily toand from eit er side of its normal central position wherein said floor section is closed whereby to open and close said Vfloor section vwhen the latter-is swung from either hinge mechanism, spbstan'tially as described.

19. The combination with a car-body havin a plurality of dumping iioor sections `on eit er side of the car, of separable hinge mechanisms supporting said floor sections on both their inner and outer longitudinal edges whereby either edge may be dropped, and a longitudinally extending shaft mounted beneath the series'of floor sections on each side of the car, each of said shafts having anleccentric `member en aging the under side of each oor rotary' and bodily lateral movementv to said .shafton either side of its normal central posi- .tonf wherein Asaid floor sections are closed,

substantially asdscribed.

' 20. In a railway car having center sills and sides, the combination of a dumping floor sectioncomprisingone or more doors on each IOO los

side of said center'sillaand separable hinge? i mechanismssupport'ing said doors on both of' theirlongitudinal edges adjacent to saidcenter sills and said sides'` whereby either edge of.

the" doors-'may substantially as described.,

2.1, In a railwaycr center sills land!" sides, the combinationof `a' dumping Hoor section comprising onefr-more ldoors on each side of said' centersills, se arablel hinge mechanismssuptpxtlirting said otheir longitu ae ges adjacent to" center sills and said sides whereby eithenside ofthe door may means for lsaid scribed.l y

22, In a railway oa: having center sills 'and mi Substantiauy as, de?

ily movable toward and from sides, the combinatmn.v pf 1a' dumping,finer oors on botlig` be dropped,v and actuating.

section comprising one Or more doors on each l side of said center sllls, separable hinge mechanisms'suprortingsaid doors on'both of their sills and said longitudine edges adjacent to "sai'djcenter si es whereby'either side of the doorv may be dropped]l and acueting means serving to Ope'rteA saidr doors when Op'eni'ng in either direction, substantially as described. j

lthe door in the closed position, means for ref leasing the locking devices to allow the door to o enst eitheredge, a crank shaft journaled at tBe opposite ends of the door, its crank being arranged to act on the door to close the latter when swung in either direction and forming a supporting stirru for the door hen open, substantiallyV as escribed.

ETHAN I, DODDS.

Witnesses SAMUEL N. POND, FREDERICK .0. GOODWIN. 

